Stabbing victim charged with evading Springfield police for 12 years

SPRINGFIELD – A man, who has been running from the police for a dozen years after robbing an undercover officer, was arrested early Sunday morning after becoming a victim himself.

Jermaine Coleman, 34, was charged on three outstanding warrants. One accuses him of robbing an undercover officer in 1997, another accuses him of five different charges including assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and carrying a firearm without a license in 2003 and a third, also dating to 2003, charges him with intimidation of a witness, Capt. C. Lee Bennett said.

The 2003 assault charge alleges Coleman shot his brother, she said.

Coleman was stabbed at about 10:50 p.m., Saturday on Cottage Street and brought to Baystate Medical Center by ambulance. When police were questioning him, they realized Coleman had given a false name and investigated further, finding the default warrants. He was arrested at about 2 a.m. Sunday, she said.

Police believe Coleman had been living in the Albany, N.Y. area and was in Springfield attending a funeral. He is currently in police custody in the hospital.